Thomas Kulp had enough with this ice cream truck! He knew he had to take matters into his own hands. After the two consecutive weeks of that dilapidated ice cream truck coming down the road Thomas was fed up.
Taking on the Ice Cream Man..
He didn’t know which was worse. Was it that old-timey, cringe-worthy music that filled the neighborhood to let kids know he was there to ruin their appetite for dinner or the fact his kids pleaded with Thomas every day to get them ice cream? To make matters worse other neighborhood kids asked him for ice cream money.
“These kids don’t get it. I wasn’t going to buy ice cream for everyone. Plus it was almost dinnertime. Who in their right mind would let their child eat treats right before dinner? That notion is preposterous!” Thomas told me.
One night after his kids went to bed Kulp scurried into his garage to build a few A-frame barricades that you might see at construction sites. Kulp loves building things and it dawned on him to put his passion to good use.
After a second coat of paint and finishing it up with some water sealant Thomas was ready to put his barricades to work.
The next day as Kulp checked his watch and realized that the dastardly ice cream truck was going to be in the neighborhood soon. He asked his neighbor, David Hamilton to help him block off the road. Thomas booked it to one side of the street. He put a few barricades up and his neighbor put two more on the other side of the street.
Taking it to the streets….
Kulp’s kids and other children were watching in disbelief while parents seemed to marvel at his tenacity.
“I have never seen such determination from Tom before. That truck really got under his skin. I will tell you what though I am glad he did it. I wasn’t happy that the ice cream man came right before supper time.” Hamilton said.
Kulp was so eager to remember this glorious day and see the look on the ice cream man’s face that he took out his phone and started to record as the truck coming down the road.
According to neighbors the ice cream man didn’t really have a reaction one way or the other to the road being blocked off, but Kulp had a different take on it.
“I could tell he was upset. I saw a bit of anger in the man’s face as he drove by our street. He knew he was beat!” Kulp said.
A few days later with the barricades still being up on the street the truck stopped going into Kulp’s neighborhood.
Kulp won the war on stopping the threat of dessert before dinner, but he may have created some new enemies. One day as he walked out his front door to go to work he saw that his car got egged.
“It is probably just a few kids that are angry with me since I drove the ice cream man away, but they will get over it. I know their parents are grateful for my efforts.” Kulp said.
To some Thomas is a hero. To others he is a grumpy old man that enjoys taking happiness away from innocent children. Either way Kulp is happy with the outcome. From time to time he will re-watch the video of his victory over the ice cream man. It always puts a smile on his face.